The Secretary for Development, Mr Paul Chan, will lead a delegation to Tianjin tomorrow (July 22) to attend the Cross Straits, Hong Kong and Macao Symposium on the Reuse of Architectural Heritage.
The delegation will comprise representatives from the Development Bureau, the Leisure and Cultural Services Department, the Advisory Committee on Revitalisation of Historic Buildings and participating organisations of the Revitalising Historic Buildings Through Partnership Scheme, as well as practitioners of the architecture and heritage conservation fields.
The symposium is co-organised by the State Administration of Cultural Heritage (SACH), the Tianjin Municipal People's Government, the Taiwan Shen Chun Chi Foundation, the Development Bureau of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government and the Secretariat for Social Affairs and Culture of the Macao Special Administrative Region Government. With a broad objective to "share, exchange and develop", the symposium aims to examine the reuse of built heritage in the context of principles and techniques, policy and management modes, co-operation mechanisms, social effectiveness and overall prospects. Participants will also share their achievements and experiences in reusing built heritage in the Mainland, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau.
Mr Chan will deliver a speech at the opening ceremony on July 23. Various case studies and reports will also be presented by representatives from the Mainland, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau at the symposium. The projects to be presented by the Hong Kong representatives include the assessment of proposals under the Revitalising Historic Buildings Through Partnership Scheme, Lui Seng Chun, the Dr Sun Yat-sen Museum and Tai O Heritage Hotel.
During his visit, Mr Chan will meet the Director of the SACH, Mr Li Xiaojie, and the Vice Mayor of Tianjin, Ms Cao Xiaohong. He will also meet Taiwan representatives and relevant officials from Macau. He will return to Hong Kong on the evening of July 23.
Other members of the delegation will also visit local historic buildings, examples of modern architecture, a cultural centre and a museum on July 25 to learn about Tianjin’s success in incorporating built heritage into the daily life of the community and using it to stimulate a more creative local economy.
Ends/Sunday, July 21, 2013
Issued at HKT 16:00
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